


Amorphophallus Titanum

by Dodo



Series: Animal AUs no one asked for [13]
Category: Marvel, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Crack, Flowers, Fluff and Crack, Frottage, Gardens & Gardening, M/M, Mutual Pining, Plants, Pollination, Tony Stark Needs a Hug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-02
Updated: 2019-03-02
Packaged: 2019-11-08 03:14:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,194
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17973407
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dodo/pseuds/Dodo
Summary: Tony needs a change of pace, he finds that in his mother's old greenhouse. It is there he discovers a small green spike that flourishes with his attentions, and blooms into a friendship.





	Amorphophallus Titanum

**Author's Note:**

  * For [FestiveFerret](https://archiveofourown.org/users/FestiveFerret/gifts).



> this is still in tie with the rest of the cracky animal AUs; just me trying a different formula.

Since coming back from afghanistan everything had been different for Tony from shutting down his weapons manufacturing and building a better heart and ironman mark II. It was like the place he left was no longer the same home, he couldn’t see himself doing that life style anymore. Sure his friends were still supporting him, but if felt like there was something missing now.

Surely not the bottle, which he dutifully ignored after detoxing in a cave. His thoughts were sharper without it, even though the desire to mute his emotions was still there. Drinking had never really removed them, just sort a put them in a limbo. Something for later once he became sober they’d flood back in like an unwanted uncontrollable tide.

That's why he found himself outside the stark mansion, unfinished business from many years back. The grounds were nicely kept by a gardner, that Tony had been paying from a trust in his mother’s name. Maria had a wondrous garden, that she had retreated into around the time Tony had become a teen. He loved his mom and he can understand why she did it the tensions between him and Howard had been at the all time high, strained, and very brittle.

He wished he’d have listen to her more often, he entered the greenhouse in the back. Mind made up that he would pick up gardening on the side hoping to fill that void, hoping that communing in his mother’s garden might give him a sense of peace that he needed now more than ever.

The only problem? He sucked with plants, the only reason the plants in his office were green was because Pepper tended to them. He was hoping he could find the gardner while he was on duty and demand to be taught. Everything was nicely groomed in the green house, from what he could tell.

There were hanging vines and shrub like things and many different sorts of flowers. Farther back there was a fountain and then off to the side of that there was an odd clearing, in the center was a tiny ankle high gate around a soft loamy mound that had a green spike in the middle of it. It was curious the only plant that was separate from the others.

He reached out to touch the plant, when a cough from behind him startled him and he whirled around. Coming face to face with an older lady, probably 60ish by the silver hair. She was holding a battered water can, she gave tony a once over.

“Master Stark, what can I do for you?”  
This must be the gardner for some reason Tony had thought it was going to be a man. Tony looked back at the green spike many questions filled his head.

“I’d like to learn to garden,”  
Hesitantly looking around and avoiding eye contact, he was drawn back to the small green spike of the plant in the clearing.

“Excellent, we’ll start on the easy ones. You should be good at it your mother was the most amazing gardner I ever knew.”  
Tony straighten the other knew his mother? He didn’t recall her at the funeral, but he doesn’t remember much about that time period. He’d been so busy burying and drowning the hurt and running from his emotions.

“Come, we’ll leave little Steve alone, he’s a picky little plant. Maria never got him to bloom, and now he just might.”  
The gardner gestured to the green spike. Steve apparently.  
“Named him out of spite, I see you asking. Never really asked, I was younger wisely decided not to know. Come I’ll get you a watering can.”  
Tony followed hesitantly sparing a glance back at the green plant named Steve that might have been named that because of Howard spending his life looking for another Steve. Maria had been a good mother if a bit distanced and Tony could remember in a few instances where a few people earned her spite.  
-  
The lady was named Dee, she was very odd for Tony anyways. She carried on full blown conversations with the plants in the garden. She even talked about him to the plants, and when Tony asked about this habit she brushed him off.  
“They have no ears can they hear not sure, but I like to pretend they can.”

At least some of the plants in the green house had a watering schedule something tony could follow pretty well. Some of the plants were water if their soil is dry but don’t over water. Which took a bit of work to figure out the over watering part. Which was essentially holding off on dumping the entire can into the pot. Go figure, the other plants that weren’t potted were easier, an overhead sprinkler took care of them.

The only plant that tony was drawn to with the Steve spike in the back of the green house. Which Dee had noticed after a few days, She’d given Tony the binder. His mother’s grimoire on her plants, her ‘spells’ which consisted of things that he later googled and found them to be appropriate. Eggshells scattered in a bed repels slugs, or several herbicides. It was more of an almanac.

It was his mother’s though and it was clearly something she had painstakingly put together complete with scribbly little illustrations. Tony had taken it home and scanned it into his personal server. The book he kept in his personal library, probably fixating on it a bit more than needed. There were a few logs in it, dates and diary entries. An inside look to his mother, she had a wry sense of humor and she doted an awful lot on Steve even though ‘that little rapscallion won’t bloom’.  
-  
It used to be the same thing day in and out, or at least Steve hoped it was day in or out. He really only knew it was cold, maybe freezing. It sucked a lot he’d awaken from his nap or dosing and it would still be chilly.

It seemed like a eon before the cold faded and things became damp, and humid. It was better than being cold but Steve would have liked it to be warmers and less muggy, but happy with the change and unable to voice his wish he stayed quiet. It was better than the cold.

He could see things only when they came in contact with his body? Or whatever he was now. There had been a very lovely looking lady that called him by his name. He’d wished so hard to somehow communicate with her ask if the war was over. Where he was what was he? He could feel dirt at his feet, but nothing more. She would sing and occasionally talk, but one day she never came back.

There was a younger lady, Dee she tended to him for many years. He only knew the passage of time by her aging as she cared for him. Steve came to the conclusion that he was some sort of plant. Dee’s rambling were often about the green house and she carried a watering can, the dirt made sense if Steve was some sort of plant.

It didn’t make sense if he was a plant, but he did manage to glean that the war he fought in was long over. There were other wars to be made and fought according to Dee. Steve wilted with that information and it took him a while to get over the feeling of failure.

Then one day a young man came to him, touched his body and Steve shivered. The man was beautiful with a neat looking facial hair. Steve could hear Dee taching the other about plants and talking of the first lady, who was apparently the man’s mother. Steve tried to reach out to Tony trying to let the other know he was aware. For Tony reminded him of Howard, and while Howard had been an acquired taste, Tony was different.

Steve formed a deep attachment to Tony, Even though he was a plant. He could feel warmth blossoming within his core everytime Tony attended to him. Watering him touching his roots, talking to him about things beyond Steve’s understandings.  
-  
“That little spike has taken a liking to you,”  
Dee announced one day while Tony was pruning some of the roses, he was still rather incompetent with the roses. Dee was chewing on a stick that smelt of licorice, one of the plants in the green house made safe to chew licorice tasting sticks. Tony didn’t care for licorice if it was just that flavor so he passed on it.

“How can you tell? It's a plant?”  
“Oh he leans in and turns to face you, sometimes I can see it quivering under your hands.”  
Dee chewed on the stick some more her hands deftly repotting the soil on some plant that had runners shooting out of it. Tony waited sensing she had something else to say.  
“Steve has always seemed different from the other plants, but he’s not longer that sickly looking spike. He’s easily doubled in size and I’m attributing that to you. It's lovely, I think Maria would be proud.”

Tony was taken aback at the last part, but also the first part. He made Steve bigger, it was true that the spike had become larger, greener, and it did look much better. Though he’d assumed it was Dee working her green thumbs. Yes his mom would have been proud just based on her entries in the book. He felt warm that was nice to think.

“You suck with the roses though, Tony. I will do that go tend to Steve. When he blooms we should get some press coverage. Also since he’s a corpse flower he’ll stink.”  
Dee removed the shears form Tony’s hands as she shooed him to the back of the green house where Steve resided.

Steve was about the same size as Tony now, and the green was more shades and deeper in color. He did look much healthier than the first time tony had seen him. Tony placed his hand on the spike.  
“Good afternoon Steve,”  
He removed the hand and picked up some fertilizer to apply around the base of the plant. When he turned back to Steve he found that the plant had indeed tilted towards him. Tony smiled as he settled at the base digging at the loamy soil with his hands as he carefully mixed in some of the fertilizer.

“You are looking pretty good today, Dee took over the roses. They might be pretty but they are so thorny, also don’t really have much of a scent. Unlink you, heard you’ll have a very strong odor when you bloom, pretty excited about that.”  
Tony chatted as he finished up placing the mixed soil and fertilizer around the base, hands occasionally stroking the stem. It was sleek and slightly waxy but it seemed to be somewhat warm.  
-  
Steve was gaining more awareness of his surroundings he was in a garden but in a glass house. He turned his body to face Tony, reaching out with his mind trying to make a connection. He felt more like himself, memories were coming together more coherently. There was a feeling of time slipping away, that after he blooms he’d loose Tony.

There was fear he didn’t want to loose Tony. his own companion he really liked spending time with the other even if he wasn’t able to contribute much to the conversation. His outer leaf the spathe was nearly ready to reveal his inside, he desired Tony to see him. To bare his inners of his plant body.

The green house seemed cooler, but according to Dee it was Steve slowly warming up. To trick the bugs into thinking Steve was in fact a dead body. Heat apparently spread the scent better. Steve wasn’t to happy that he’d smell like death and could only hope Tony could see past that.  
-  
On friday Steve bloomed, Tony came in first thing to see the beautiful flower, with a frilly spathe embracing his massive form. The deep purple blue that colored the inside of the spathe added to the dramatics of the massive yellowish spadix. Dee had called Tony, to come see the plant before the few press people came to photograph Steve.

The spathe wasn’t fully open yet.  
“Wow Steve you look magnificent.”  
Tony reached out and touched the spathe, and then reached int to touch the yellow spadix on compulsion. It looked soft, it was more spongy than soft Tony thought that ought to be normal but he had no point of reference.

When the press arrived the spathe was fully open showing of the deep red veins blending into purple and finally some blue at the base. It was beautiful and the press was enraptured with Steve, even if they expressed that the oder was noxious. Tony got pulled into taking pictures with Steve, Stark and a giant stinky flower, would apparently make it more interesting to the audience. Budding tech mogol Tony Stark was going back to his grass roots and honing a hobby his late mother had.

Dee had a hand in that, she also kept the press away from the rest of the garden plants. Eventually she ushered them out of the green house returned and packed up her stuff.  
“I gotta be off, you can take care for the place for now?”  
Tony nodded still entranced with Steve’s presence. He couldn’t really detected the odor. Maybe he’d gone nose blind to the scent of death.

Tony didn’t leave the greenhouse that night, he was very much enamored with the sweet scent Steve was giving off.  
_Tony, please Tony touch me_  
He could hear a voice on the edge of his ability to hear chant his name, begging for his touch. He turned around and focused on Steve. Reaching out he placed his hand on the Spadix, there was a discharge of static electricity Steve was very warm to the touch and the entire flower shifted towards Tony..

“Steve?”  
He called hesitantly afraid of what was going on.  
“Are you okay buddy?”  
_Tony, I can feel I don’t have long. Please touch me?_  
Okay that was stronger but he wasn’t actually hearing it, Steve the flower was communicating with him telepathically. This was very weird, Tony would have questioned it more if it wasn’t for the utter desperation in Steve’s voice.

“Alright big guy,”  
Tony petted the spathe enjoying it's lovely ribbed texture. The plant shuddered underneath his fingers.  
_Tony please pollinate me, I’d like to have sex before I die._  
Tony just blinked then looked around. He dashed off to the front of the greenhouse, to lock the place up so there was no chance of being found out.

Steve wilted when Tony ran off, he asked to much. It was silly he’d hoped the other would but apparently having sex with a plant was a turn off. He really felt like he was being pulled from here, and he was afraid that he would finally cease to be. There was the desire to experience sex first though. He’d come to love Tony over the past few weeks.

“Steve are you okay?”  
Tony came back to see Steve soggy and wilted. He placed his hand on the yellow spadix propping it up.  
“Oh-oh i was locking the doors Steve! Are you still here?”  
_Tony_  
The plant perked up some and the spathe was cloyingly brushing up against Tony’s crotch. Tony smiled and patted the leaf. Pleased to see that Steve was still there.

Tony had come back! Steve was overjoyed. He tried to show how happy he was but all his energy was being used to right himself. Tony had never left him he was just securing their privacy. Steve got to watch tony slowly slip his cloths off. He reached out with his spathe to brush against Tony’s legs and backside in a appreciative manner.

“Whoa Steve calm down.”  
_I would but I don’t have long, I feel like I’m being pulled from here. I want to spend my last moments with you._  
Tony paused, he was moved really but he also felt a bit of pain hearing that Steve might be leaving him. He smothered the feeling of loneliness and decided to grant Steve’s wish. He kept his under shirt on as he rubbed his hand on the spathe and along the spadix.

Steve quivered under tony’s deft hands. It felt so good he only wished he could return the favor. Besides rubbing his spathe against tony’s body as he came closer. It was a poor substitute for a hand. Though it seemed to excite Tony when he brushed in against Tony’s crotch. Tony moaned softly as Steve used his spathe in a clever manner.

Tony was quite hard just from Steve lightly brushing his leaf against his dick. It was partly unfair how fast he got hard from the delicate touches and brushes of the outer fringe. Steve seemed to lean forward as if he wanted to rub his spadix on Tony’s dick. Tony obliged and let his dick rub against the bottom of the spadix against the ring of flowers of both male and female genders. A few of the reddish female flowers broke off. Steve shuddered violently at that.

“You okay Steve?”  
_It.. feels so good._  
Steve was pretty glad in that moment he didn’t have a face, Tony applied his dick against the base where his delicate flowers were and rubbed against them more. His spathe convulsed as he used it to brush against Tony’s balls cub the underside of them. He wished for hands to show Tony just how much he cared for the other.

“Okay Steve just keep me in the loop.”  
Tony dragged his fingers up and down the spadix as he carefully pressed his dick along the groove in the side of it. Rubbing it, not letting up in his ministrations Steve needed this. He sounded so beautiful in his head too, like he was flushed.

Steve leaned his whole body into Tony the desire to just feel and commit this to his memory. Even if he was sure he was dying there was a need to make it good for Tony. Steve shuddered as Tony’s nimble hands flew over his spadix with precision. The dick was crafuelly prodding back at his flowers. Something within Steve clenched up, it felt good.  
_I-I..._

Tony managed a breathing intake of air, exhaling out on to Steve. Plants loved carbon dioxide right?  
“Steve are you close?”  
His hands held on to the yellowish spadix as he rolled his hips into the flowers clustered around Steve’s base. He could feel the plant pusing under him. It was an unusual feeling, Tony was certain Steve was nearing his climax.  
_I think so, I’m so warm, you make me feel so good...complete_

Steve quivered as the warmth and tingling spread to his roots. They curled up or gave indication that they were reacting to that feeling. His spathe convulsed with jerky movements at the pleasure overwhelmed his plant form. He could feel his spores releasing, as Tony ran his dick against them.  
_Oh god...Tony!_

Tony smiled as Steve’s plant body shook and heaved against his. Steve was being very poetic and flowery with his comments, though in his mind he could feel how Steve felt. The passion and warm feelings Tony wanted to say they were love but he was unsure of that emotion. He came against Steve’s base groaning out softly, while telling Steve how well he’d done.

 _Thank you Tony, I wish I could stay here with you_  
Steve offered up after Tony had praised his skill. If Steve could blush as a plant he certainly would be. The thought of him fumbling through this was erased with Tony’s words. Steve had done great, it smoothed over the anxiousness of not being good for his partner. Tony wasn’t someone who would lie about this, Steve sagged a bit. Oh it was time to go.

 _I love you, Tony_  
Tony grinned but then as the plant stilled and sagged a bit, the smile turned into a frown.  
“Steve?”  
He patted the spadix in a worrying manner, no response. Had Steve left the flower, he was pulled away by something. Tony bit his bottom lip and removed himself from the flower. Pulling on his cloths as he watched the flower for anything. Any quiver ot slight tilt he’d grown accustom to expecting.

Nothing it was just a plant, Tony shook his head dispelling his negative thoughts. He needed to clean up, applying some water to dilute and wash away his cum at the base of the flower. That's when he started to notice the overpowering scent of rotting flesh. The flower had become a true corpse flower, it was the corpse of Steve. It seemed fitting though, Tony left the green house a bit dazed.

He would miss Steve, the flower he’d come to love and enjoy. He would go back to the greenhouse eventually, leaving a text message for Dee. Using the something came up nonsense to guarantee himself a few days to sort this problem out.  
\- The next day Tony was contacted by SHIELD apparently his father had founded that shadow government agency. They wished to talk and at first Tony wanted nothing to do with them even if they wanted him just for consulting only; But then a familiar voice asked for him to come by and he was super curious.

In the conference room there was a bland looking man with a receding hairline in a suit sitting at the head of the table. Of to the side was a tall blond man who was quite muscular. The blond one turned when Tony entered, mouth opened with a:  
“Tony!”

“Steve!”  
Tony breathed excitedly his flower was still alive and human. Paying no mind to the man at the table Steve embraced Tony. Tony wrapped his arms around Steve’s shoulders even if he had to get on his tippy toes to do so. At least Steve was shorter as a man, then he’d been as a flower.

“I’ve missed you.”  
Steve spoke fervently as he leaned down to kiss Tony. Pressing down and cupping the back of Tony’s head. There was a mingle of tongues and before anything more could happen the man at the table coughed. Steve pulled out of the kiss but didn’t let go of Tony.

He beamed at Tony, Arms rubbing up and down Tony’s back they kissed again but it was chaste. Then the sat down, or rather Steve sat down and Tony sat in his lap leaning against the broad warm chest ready to listen to whatever this agent had to say. Tony only had eyes for Steve he merely let the words wash over him. Apparently they'd found Steve in the ice and planned to thaw him out and inter him at Arlington. However as Tony say it they'd breen surprised that Steve Rogers was very much alive.

  
Tony did some quick math at the dates that the agent had given him and it seemed to line up with his experience with the plant, it took off and matured once it wasn't as cold. Floweringer and then Tony colored just thinking about it. Steve placed a hand on his shoulder and leaned in the agent was no where to be seen at this point. "Tony you wanna go out with me?" "Do I ever!"

-  
Wow that had been fantastic Tony looked over to see Steve stretched out like a very mellow starfish. It certainly had been odd fucking a giant plant, but for this image of Steve laying all sprawled out in the sunlight. So worth it.

There were in a cabin nestled in the alps, and the day had been a long. They had scoured part of the valley below and tomorrow the same was scheduled. Alce had sent them a magic box for the ride and Steve had suggested they use it the first night. After a hard time in the freshly melted snow, mud all over. Tony disliked it immensely being reminded of the time he ate a worm.

Steve had been keen to remind him, and once in a while while moving the rocks aside he’d hold one up. Then offer him a snack, while holding the worm. Tony had implied Steve was the snack and well that was probably why they used the box. Steve had objected saying he was a full course meal, Tony wasn’t to sure if that was Clint talking though Steve or if Steve was catching up on the lingo.

Anyways they had come home washed up and used the box, which still looked like it had some charge to it? Which was good, the stories actually helped them focus on not Bucky which Tony felt Steve needed. The Steve starfish wrapped one arm around Tony and pulled him closer. Yeah, time to sleep, Steve could probably hear him thinking.


End file.
